This temple is also known as Shri Gomuktishwarar Temple. It is one of the Saptasthana shiva temples of Kanjanur. It is situated on the Mayiladuthurai-Kuttralam-Kumbhakonam route at a distance of 20 kms from Mayiladuthurai. It is very close to Thiruvalankadu. This is also one of the Padal Pethra Sthalam on the southern bank of river Kaveri. The temple is revered by Sambandhar, Appar and Sundarar in their sacred hymns.
Siddha Thirumoolar and shaiva saint Thirumaligainayanar attained salvation at this place. The old shiva math Thiruvaduthurai Adinam is situated at this place.
Moolavar: Shri Gomuktishwarar, Shri Masilamaneshwarar
Devi: Shri Oppilamuliammai, Shri Atulyakujambal, Shri Abhaygujambal
Kshetra Vruksha: Peeple tree (in Tamil Padar Arasu)
Puranik name: Nandinagar, Navakotisiddhapuram, Arasavanam, Bodhivanam, Gokazhi-Gomukhi-Puram
Kshetra Purana:
1. Once in Kailash, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were playing a game of dice. Lord Shiva lost the game and Goddess Parvati laughed at him. He got angry and cursed her to become a cow and roam in Bhooloka. Goddess Parvati became upset and felt sorry for leaving her husband. She asked for forgiveness and for atonement so she can reunite with her husband. He stated that at one place she will regain her normal form and he will join her. She came to Bhooloka and reached the southern bank of river Kaveri. At Thiruvaduthurai, she found a Shiva-linga and started worshiping by performing abhishek with milk. Lord Shiva who was pleased by her devotion restored her to her original form and embraced her. This place where Lord Shiva gave mukti to the cow is known as Shri Gomuktishwaram and Lord Shiva is known as Shri Gomukteshwarar. The greatness of this place is stated in the Kshetra purana by citing a number of instances.
2. Once Goddess Parvati asked Lord Shiva "everyone worships you for getting a boon; is there anyone who worships you without expecting anything". Lord Shiva showed a Shiva-linga below a Bilva tree. A monkey on the tree was plucking leaves one by one from the tree and dropped it on the Shiva-linga playfully. The day happened to be a Shiva-ratri. The Lord was pleased by the monkey’s act and transformed him into a Chakravarti, granting him the boon to rule all the three worlds.
3. The king requested that he would like to have a monkey face and would like to live with the thought of Lord Shiva. The Lord granted him his wish and the king was named as Muchugandha. Once Muchugandha went to assist Lord Indra along with his eight brothers to defeat the demon king Valasura. Lord Indra, pleased by his help, requested him to ask for anything as a token of his gratitude. During this period, Lord Indra was indulging in various enjoyments and had neglected the worship of Thyagesa idol given to him by Lord Shiva. So Lord Shiva advised Muchugandha to ask for that idol from Lord Indra. Lord Indra, who was not ready to part with it, prepared six identical idols and kept them together. Lord Shiva cautioned Muchugandha the same night about Lord Indra’s intention and instructed him how to identify the real idol. When Indra showed the seven Vidanga idols, Muchugandha identified the real idol and Indra gave all the seven idols to the king. The real Tyagesha was installed at Thiruvarur. Later, the king established them at six other locations. Later, one night, Lord Shiva appeared in the dream of Muchugandha and bade him to proceed to Thiruvaduthurai and rule the kingdom from there. The king ruled from Thiruvaduthurai and became a famous and great ruler.
4. The procession deity is known as Shri Anaithuerundanayakar (the Lord who embraced his wife) but we don’t find the idol embracing Mother Goddess Parvati.
5. Shaiva saint Sambandar stayed at this place with his father. He helped his father to conduct a yagna with the grace of Lord Shiva when they had no wealth (at Sirkazhi). The Balipeeth (seat) where the Lord bestowed wealth on him exists in the temples with the ganas around the peeth (seat).
6. One of the Nayanmars, Thirumaligaithevar, was worshiping the Lord at this temple for a long time. Due to some misunderstanding, the king sent his army to arrest him. On Goddess Ambika’s request, Lord Shiva sent an army of Nandis from the temple and drove away the king’s army. Then all these Nandis merged to form one huge Nandi. You can find the Nandi idol in this temple today. It is considered to be very auspicious to pray to this Nandi. During pradosha kaal, abhishek is conducted on this huge Nandi idol.
7. One of the Shiva yogis, Sundarnathar came from Kailash to meet Sage Agastya in the South. He found a cowherd named Mulan lying dead on the ground. The cows were standing in a circle around him and were shedding tears. With his yogic powers, the Shiva yogi entered in the body of the cowherd and drove the cows back to his house. He came back to this place and did penance. Later, the Shiva yogi came to be known as Thirumoolar. He wrote three thousand divine hymns and merged with the Lord in his shrine. The shrine for Lord Tyagesha with mother Goddess Kamalambika is on the right side of the Lord’s shrine. It is believed that Lord Shiva taught Ashta-Mahasiddhis to Navakoti siddhas including Bhogar. There are separate shrines for Tirumalagaidewar and Namahshivayamurtiswamigal.
Those who worshiped at this place:
Goddess Parvati, NavaKoti siddhas, siddha Bhogar, King Cheraman (one of the 63 Nayanmars), King Kochengat Chola, King Vikrama Pandya, Lord Yama, Saint Thirumoolar, Thirumaaligai Thevar (one of the Nayanmars), Shaiva saint Sundarar, Sambandhar, Emperor Muchugandha Chakravarti.
Special features:
1. Lord Shiva performed his Mahatandav at this place. It is known as Sundar Natanam.
2. Kshetra vruksha (peeple tree) is very old. It is revered as representing the Devas. It is believed that Lord Shiva emerged from under this tree and blessed Devas.
3. Lord Vinayaka escorted his mother to this place.
4. Goddess Parvati is depicted as Shri GorupaAmbika.
5. It is believed that the Navakotisiddhas including Bhogar performed the penance at this place. They were taught the ashtamahasiddhis by Lord Shiva.
6. It is a unique temple where the Chera king Cheraman Perumal and Chola king KochengetCholan and Pandya king Vikram Pandyan have worshiped Lord at this place.
7. Lord Yama worshiped Lord Shiva at this place. Lord Shiva blessed him and gave him the honor of taking the place of his mount rishabh at this place.
About the temple:
This is an east facing temple with three parikramas and a five tiered Rajagopuram. The vimanam (tower) above the sanctum sanctorum is Dwidal (two storied). The shiva linga is a swayambhu linga facing the east. Nandi is very huge. The present temple structure is about 2000 years old and was constructed by the chola kings. The stone inscriptions give an account of the work done by the various kings. Goddess Ambika is housed in a west facing shrine. The second, third and fourth parikrama are separated by huge walls. In the third parikrama, there is a separate shrine for saint Thirumoolar. The kshetra vruksha is very old and is said to be representing the Deva. In the temple complex we have the samadhi of Thirumoolar.
Sthala Vinayaka is also known as Thunai (means guide or escort) Lord Vanda Ganapati (i.e. Ganapati who came as a guide or an escort for his mother Goddess Parvati).
In the prakara, there is an idol which depicts a cow discharging the milk on a shiva linga from its udder. The idol is known as Shri Gorupa Ambika. There is no Navagraha shrine in this temple. There is an idol of Lord Shanishwarar. There are three idols of Lord Surya at one place. To the right of Lord Shiva’s shrine we come across the shrine of Lord Tyagaraja and mother Goddess Kamalambika. The processional deity is known as Shri Anaithuirundha Nayakar (Lord embracing the mother). But in idol Lord Shiva’s hands do not touch Goddess Parvati. The small Nandi is known as Shri Adhikar Nandi as abhishek is done for this Nandi. It is believed that Lord Shiva taught ashtamahasiddhi to Navakoti Siddhas including the siddha Bhogar at this place.
Other shrines and deities:
Lord Vinayaka, Lord Muruga, Lord Nataraja, Lord Dandapani, Sage Agastya, Lord Lingodbhavar, Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu, Goddess Durga, Panchalingam, Chozhalingam, Lord Bhairav, Lord Shanishwarar, Lord Surya, Lord Chandra, Goddess Saraswati, Shri Haradatta Shivacharyar, Shaiva saint Shri Maraidnyanasambandhar, Shri Umapati Shivam, Shri Meykandar, Shri Arul nidhi Shivam, Sixty three Nayanmars, Nalavar, Shri Adi Gomuktishwarar is in a corridor. These idols are found in the corridors and the koshtam. At the entrance of Lord Shiva’s shrine, we have Lord Vinayaka and Lord Muruga. It is stated that they escorted Goddess Parvati to this shrine when she was in the form of a cow.
Prayers:
1. Women pray here for the well being and longevity of their husbands.
2. Estranged couples pray here for their union.
3. People pray for a child boon.
4. People pray for removal of wedding obstacles
Poojas:
Regular pradosha puja and daily worship is done.
Some important festivals:
Purattasi (September-October): Brahmostav
Aipassi (October-November): Annabhishek
Margazhi (December-January): Thiruvathirai
Maasi (February-March): Mahashivaratri
Thai (January-February): Rathasaptami festival for five days
Temple timings: 7 to 12 and 4 to 8
Address: Shri Gomuktihswarar Temple, Thiruvaduthurai Post, Kuttralam Taluka, Nagapattinam District, Tamil Nadu 609803
Phone Number: 91-4364232021, 4364232055
Courtesy: Various websites and blogs
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